The King Of The Hill Revival Won't Air On Fox

Funnyman and animation legend Mike Judge is currently basking in the successful glow of both "Beavis and Butt-Head Do The Universe" and the titular characters' revival series on Paramount+. This has plenty wondering about the status of the "Office Space," "Idiocracy," and "Silicon Valley" creator's other landmark animation series, "King of the Hill." Created with Greg Daniels ("The Office," "Parks and Recreation," "Space Force"), the hilarious animated sitcom about the Hill family in Arlen, Texas enjoyed 13 seasons and 259 episodes, but fans are still thirsting for more. In March of 2021, Judge had revealed that a "King of the Hill" revival was in the works, but there hasn't been much movement ever since.

Many assumed that the show's original station, Fox, would be the ones to bring the series back to life, but thanks to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, we can officially count Fox out of the running. "That's not going to be with Fox," said Fox Entertainment president Michael Thorn. He noted that the station loves the team and the show, as it is a massive part of Fox's animation legacy, but that they were focusing on animation that is "launching the next wave of our signature animated series, while still having our great legacy shows."

This news shouldn't come as a surprise considering another Fox animation favorite, "Futurama," is being revived for Hulu instead of their original network. With Fox now owned by Disney, who also owns Hulu, this seems like the obvious solution. Hulu already has the streaming rights to all of "King of the Hill," so hopefully Fox's rejection will lead to Hulu's green light.

Judge and Daniels launched the animation banner Bandera Entertainment earlier this year, which is producing "Best Buds" for Peacock, as well as "Bad Crimes" and the adaptation of "Exploding Kittens" for Netflix. Part of that banner includes the prospective "King of the Hill" revival, which, as of publication, has not been officially confirmed by any distributor. According to the conversations THR had with Thorn, Fox is no longer interested in series that they can't partially or wholly own.

"We're really focused on what are the new shows that we believe can creatively break out, that we also have a significant ownership stake in, and if not outright own 100 percent of it," he told THR. "And on a show like 'King of the Hill,' which we love, there's really no opportunity for us to have an ownership stake in that show." Thorn continued by saying, "It's not a move that we can make as we grow out our next wave of animation, where ownership is so, so crucial to the long-running success of these series."

With "King of the Hill" now owned by Disney, it again makes Hulu seem like the perfect choice for the future home of any and all things Hank, Peggy, Bobby, Luanne, and Ladybird. Oh my god, I just realized that Ladybird is definitely not going to be alive for this revival. I need a moment.